Honeywell has released its 2nd annual wireless connectivity survey, and the results have shown that having Wi-Fi on a flight is really important to most travelers. So much so, that 22 percent admitted to paying more for their ticket, just to have Wi-Fi availability on their plane.
In the survey, which was conducted among over 1,000 adults who had used in flight Wi-Fi within the past 12 months, several other interesting observations were recorded.
- Wi-Fi availability has been used as a deciding factor in purchasing air fares for 66% of respondents.
- Seventeen percent have switched airlines to one with a better Wi-Fi offering.
- Thirty-seven percent say they would be upset of their next flight doesn't offer Wi-Fi.
Jack Jacobs, vice president, Marketing and Product Management, Honeywell Aerospace said:
"You can pack your own meals, but you can't pack your own Wi-Fi. The commercial aviation industry has to pay attention to meet the demands of passengers, giving them the freedom to stay connected whenever and wherever they want. Honeywell's survey affirms that consumers are accustomed to easy access to Wi-Fi, and they expect it to be fast and consistent like at home or work. Those expectations are expanding up into the sky."
Not only is Wi-Fi availability crucial, users have the need for speed, and are willing to make sacrifices for a higher bandwidth connection that would allow video chatting, video streaming, or faster file downloads. The theoretical sacrifices included being willing to arrive at the airport three hours early, go through the TSA security line twice, or swap their tickets to fly standby on a different flight.
Many users also admit to using Wi-Fi just for fun, to make the time go by. However they don't want to seen looking at such things as browsing dating sites, viewing cat videos, or watching movies that are geared toward kids.
How about you? What do you use Wi-Fi for while you're on a plane? For myself, I like to use it for social media apps, tracking my flight, and uploading photos on the go. I usually choose not to buy the WI-Fi if my flight is under 2 hours. I'd rather save the $8-10 bucks, browse the SkyMall magazine, and use that money for a couple of beers once I've arrived.
Top photo, stats and infographic were provided by Honeywell.